Greetings!
Boy, has a lot happened in the last three days! To start with a photo of Zak buying some prime quality dates in a local market just after we left our Sahara Camp this morning is a good place to begin the recap.
Our tour is called the Morocco Sahara Odyssey because the leaders of OAT believe that their trips should help travelers obtain maximum exposure to cultures and experiences we can't see back home. And we have not been let down.
Morocco's Sahara Desert has been the mysterious home for centuries of nomadic, rugged, independent tribes whose stories and images have shaped our impressions of religions, languages, music, science, engineering, and art. Most of us cannot describe well the lives of the millions North African residents today, much less give any reasonable account of how that condition might have changed in the last millenium.
Nevertheless, we intrepid fourteen, plus a guide and several drivers - took off for a three-day educational adventure to learn what we could. We were flexible, and the combination of a bold young tour leader and a bunch of seasoned travelers - served us well. To the very eastern border of Morocco, where our drums were no doubt hear in Algeria, we stargazed in the hot fall nights and stretched our batteries (both electronic and our own) to beyond the breaking point.
Like our home hosts in the cities, those who invited us into their huts were gracious and welcoming. No question was off-limits, and their responses were genuine and clear. Zak did a great job of interpreting, and often followed up to dig deeper into their answers.
We developed strong bonds with each individual, and were touched by their determination to overcome what seemed like overwhelming circumstances. It certainly put our own lives into clearer perspective, and we appreciated the luck we have been given.
We also got a chance to experience the desert first-hand. The heat was often unbearable, and the prohibition against ice-cubes or really cold water could not have lasted another day. Though we were told that our weather was inordinately good, the hot dry air tested our own determination.
We learned about food, and music, and people and had a wonderful time. And now we're back on the highway and staying at the Beber Palace in Oartzazate, the home of Moroccan Hollywood filming.
To see all of the photos taken in the last three days, click on
Sunday-Tuesday, Quartzazate, Morocco
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